Everything is Sacred
The world religions all teach that Divinity created everything. The stars. The planets. The dirt. The humans. And the mosquitoes.
I believe that Divinity is an overall immanence. It surrounds us, protects us, and is within us, as it is within everything. Everything that Divinity created is infused with its essence.
There is a common misunderstanding about the sacred. Many of us, as Witches, will freely admit the above as our beliefs, but only for some things. We remember that Divinity created only the “good” (or desirable) things, but forget that it also created the “evil” (or undesirable) things.
Divinity works on a plane that is much higher than us. As a result, we are incapable at this stage in our soul’s development of understanding Divinity completely. We claim to understand the Universal sense of balance, but we forget it when a disaster occurs and takes the lives of thousands. Our inability to see the “larger picture” clouds our view and we become afraid.
The word “sacred” is used, in many cases, synonymously with “good” and “profane” is used synonymously with “evil.” This usage doesn’t take into account the nature of Divinity and its relationship with the Universe. I think a better synonym for “sacred” is “respected.” It has nothing to do with what one considers good or desirable, but what one respects.
So what does it mean to respect things and understand their sacredness? It is to see the item in relation to Divinity, itself, and oneself. To act in a sacred manner is to act in accordance with the Divine Principles of Light, Life, Love, and Liberty. Look upon things with the Light of Divine Illumination. Promote Life with every act. Act upon things with Love at all times. Do not violate anything’s Free Will, or Liberty.
Does this mean that if something (or someone) is causing you harm, you are not allowed to defend yourself? No, but it helps to keep things in perspective. If someone wishes to dump toxic waste in a forest, you must defend the forest. The toxic waste will cause unnecessary death and the person dumping it is not respecting the life and nature of the forest. But you would need to treat the offender with respect as well. They are a person with a Will as well. As a result, you would resist the person’s actions, but without resorting to violence, name-calling, and other disrespectful (or profane) acts.
What if someone’s disrespectful actions are called a sacred act by his or her religion? Does that make it right? It does not because acts of violence are not in accordance to the universal Divine Principles of Light, Life, Love and Liberty. These are Principles that are in all great religions, though they may be described with different words. Much of the violence people commit in the name of a god is not something found in their scriptures at all, but instead an easy way to justify their actions to themselves. Most people don’t bother to read the scriptures of religions other than their own, so they won’t find out that the Islamic terrorist killing hundreds of people for jihad, for example, is directly violating the Koran’s precepts. The illusion that the act of disrespect is sacred persists because the media and the audience both do not compare the act with the words of the Koran or their innate knowledge of the Divine Principles.
It can be difficult living in a Universe where everything is sacred, since it is most difficult to see the Light if there is no Darkness with which to compare. That is the Universe we live in, though. The plastic juice bottle you just emptied is sacred, because it has the Divine essence within it. Do you need to put it on an altar and revere it? Not unless you wish. You can respect it by placing it in the appropriate receptacle where it will be broken down and made into something else that will promote Light, Life, Love and Liberty.
There is a common inclination to set sacred objects aside and use them only for special purposes. I believe that the reason we do this is not because the objects are sacred—since everything is—but because we see a special use for that object. Its energy resonates with us. It calls to us. If we set it aside and use it for special purposes only, then it will stay ready for such needs and the energy we charged it with would not become diffused.
To live in a Universe recognizing the sacredness of everything is very liberating. It opens one’s heart to the infinite possibilities that such a Universe offers. It frees us to keep the objects that call to us and to use them respectfully. It also allows us to rid ourselves of objects that no longer suit our purposes because we know that it will be used by someone or something else for some other purpose.
The cyclical nature of the Universe adds to this liberation because when we rid ourselves of something, we know that it will come back in another form. Divinity is eternal, so everything is eternal. If an accidental fire destroys a staff that was special to us, we know that the staff will return to us in another form. It is not lost forever, but that its time with us in that form has come to an end. Its apparent destruction does not reduce its sacredness.
If everything is sacred, then what is profane? The term “profane” can only be used to describe actions of disrespect. When describing an object, “profane” is simply a word describing how one sees the object when they are forgetting that it is actually sacred. It is a figment of the lower mind when it disconnects itself with the higher self. One can treat a sidewalk profanely when they disrespect it by throwing their trash on to it, but they are not changing the sacred nature of the sidewalk. They are simply forgetting it.
Remember that the sacred is all around us. It is within us. There is no separation between the sacred and the profane, because there are no profane objects in this Universe. Connect with the sacredness around you. Feel the energy of the Divine essence that emanates from the objects next to you that you never thought of as sacred before. Keep this in mind when you feel disconnected from the gods and lost. Remembering and feeling the Divinity around and within you at all times is one of the most liberating things you can do for yourself.
(Note: This article was first published in February, 2003 at The Witches’ Voice)